Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders

Adverse Effects of Drinking While Pregnant

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders affect an estimated 40,000 children in the United States annually, according to the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Center for Excellence as date of publication. All of the health effects these children endure as...

How Does Social Drinking Affect Pregnant Women?

When a pregnant woman drinks alcohol, the alcohol passes through the placenta into the unborn baby's bloodstream. Fetuses cannot break down alcohol as effectively as adults, so alcohol stays in the bloodstream for a long time, potentially causing...

Facts About the Problems of Drinking While Pregnant

While many women drink casually in the weeks before they learn they’re pregnant, it’s essential to stop drinking alcohol as soon as you find out you’re expecting. Any alcohol you drink will pass through your placenta and into...

Alcoholism & Side Effects

Alcoholism is characterized by physical and psychological dependence on alcohol. Dependency may develop from long-term abuse, and increasing amounts are needed to reach the desired effect. Constant exposure to alcohol alters the sensitivity of...

Parts of the Brain That Are Susceptible to Alcohol Damage

Continued use and abuse of alcohol can lead to multiple organ damage, especially to the brain, liver and heart. Alcohol is actually a depressant with side effects of drowsiness and sedation, despite the initial effect of stimulation and diminished...

Drinking Wine & Pregnancy

Drinking any kind of alcohol during pregnancy is believed to be a leading cause of birth defects. Fetal alcohol syndrome causes babies to be born small and underweight. They can have small eyes and small heads. Other defects can include delayed...

How Is a Fetus Affected by Drug or Alcohol Abuse?

Alcohol use can affect a fetus in many ways. According to the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Center for Excellence, it is estimated that over 40,000 babies are born in the United States each year with some type of disorder that is attributed to...

Drugs That Cause Congenital Heart Disease

Teratogen is the medical term for any substance that causes abnormalities in a fetus. Teratogenic drugs can cause congenital heart disease, but in almost every situation where a pregnant woman would need to take a teratogenic drug, a safe,...

Calories in Ice Wine

If you're watching your weight, choose red or white wine over ice wine. Ice wine is a high calorie wine because of its increased sugar content.

Fetal Alcohol Effects

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) reports that in the United States, prenatal exposure to alcohol is the most common cause of birth defects. No amount of alcohol exposure during pregnancy is deemed safe to the fetus....

The Effects of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

Fetal alcohol syndrome, known as FAS, is a condition that results from prenatal alcohol exposure. There is a wide range of severity of fetal alcohol syndrome disorders, and these are all covered under the newer umbrella term of FASD. According to...

About the Use of Alcohol During Last Trimester of Pregnancy

It is widely known that heavy drinking during pregnancy may cause birth defects, however many women do not realize that moderate to light use of alcohol may also be harmful. According to the March of Dimes, no level of alcohol use during pregnancy...

Can Drinking Alcohol While Pregnant Be Safe?

Fetal alcohol syndrome, or FAS, was first identified in 1973 as a spectrum of disorders that can result in physical abnormalities, cognitive deficits and behavioral difficulties in children who were exposed to alcohol while in utero. According to...

What Food, Juices amd Herbs Should Be Avoided in Pregnancy?

A healthy, well balanced diet is important throughout life and even more significant during pregnancy. A developing baby needs specific nutrients and vitamins to grow properly. In addition, certain types of food should be avoided because of the...

How to Use Mouthwash While Pregnant

While pregnant, no known quantity of alcohol is considered safe for the baby, therefore many obstetricians recommend that pregnant women avoid alcohol completely as soon as they know they are pregnant. According to the American Pregnancy...

Is Occasional Drinking While Pregnant Safe?

Despite conflicting media reports, health authorities recommend avoiding alcohol completely during pregnancy because it is not known what levels of alcohol will harm your developing baby. Drinking during pregnancy can result in potentially severe...

What Are the Harms of Drinking Alcohol?

Drinking alcoholic beverages is a staple in many cultures, including the United States. Drinking is common in many social settings, but the line between what is acceptable alcohol consumption and what is alcohol abuse is sometimes thin. Alcohol...

Fetal Alcohol Treatment

You already know that when you're pregnant, you're eating for two. That goes for what you drink, as well. Alcohol of any kind---beer, wine, champagne, and liquor---is also ingested by the baby and can cause lifelong, irreversible damage. The...

Risk Factors for Children With FAS

Consumption of alcohol during pregnancy can cause a number of long-term, negative effects on a developing child. FAS, or fetal alcohol syndrome, is one such debilitating condition resulting from prenatal alcohol exposure. The Centers for Disease...

Beer & Brain Damage

Beer contains alcohol, and drinking an excessive amount over a long period of time can damage your brain. Chronic alcoholism, or drinking an excessive amount of alcohol habitually, can affect not only your personal relationships and work, but your...

Substance Abuse & Its Effects on Young Children

Children need a loving, stable environment in which to thrive and grow. In a family where there is substance abuse, the importance of these criteria are substantially lowered. Substance abuse can include alcohol, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine...

Drinking Side Effects

Alcohol is a central nervous system depressant that historically was used as a pain reliever. It can intensify the actions of other CNS depressant drugs, sometimes with fatal effects. Alcohol is generally considered safe or even beneficial to...

Relationship Between Alcohol and Child Abuse

The child welfare system considers alcohol use and abuse among caregivers of children to be a serious problem that tends to fuel abuse, according to the Child Welfare Information Gateway. Children whose parents have problems with alcohol are more...

Five Facts on Alcohol

Human consumption of alcohol dates back to ancient civilizations. The appeal of alcohol relates to its effects on the brain, which typically invoke sedating, pleasurable feelings. Despite the wide acceptance of alcohol consumption in society,...

Pregnancy No-Nos

According to the American Pregnancy Association, of the nearly 6 million pregnancies that occur in the U.S. each year, about 2 million pregnant women will experience a pregnancy loss and 875,000 will experience complications. Sometimes these...

The Effects of Drugs and Alcohol on Fetal Development

During pregnancy, you expose your developing baby to anything you put into your body. When you have an alcoholic beverage, a cigarette or abuse prescription or illegal drugs, your baby feels the effects. No safe amount of alcohol, tobacco or drugs...